Tulane Green Wave keeps its season alive with 3-0 victory over East Carolina Pirates

George Clark / The Associated PressTulane players celebrate their 3-0 victory over top-seeded East Car´olina in a Conference USA Tournament elimination game Friday in Hattiesburg, Miss.

HATTIESBURG, MISS. -- Of late, the Tulane players -- especially the 10 seniors -- have talked about how they don't want to see their season end.

And it hasn't yet, thanks to the efforts of three of those seniors Friday.

Josh Zeid pitched seven innings, Drew Allain threw out two runners at the plate and Scott Powell drove all the runs the Green Wave needed in a 3-0 victory against No. 15 East Carolina in a Conference USA Tournament elimination game at Pete Taylor Park.

The victory advanced fourth-seeded Tulane (34-24) to a Friday night game against fifth-seeded Southern Mississippi, which thrashed the Green Wave 15-3 in its tournament opener Wednesday.

A Tulane victory would mean another game against the Golden Eagles at 12:30 p.m. today, although rain is in the forecast.

"This is fun, " Allain said. "When we got to the field today, we talked about how we might not be playing baseball after today. We want to just keep playing, because it's so special to be out here together. We aren't ready to go home."

The Green Wave demonstrated that Friday.

Zeid (6-0) hadn't had a decision since April 11 and hadn't gone more than six innings since February. But against a team hitting a conference-best .345 and averaging 8.8 runs per game, he blanked the top-seeded Pirates into the eighth inning, giving way to Preston Claiborne after experiencing leg cramps.

Claiborne finished the job, allowing only a ninth-inning single.

It is the first time East Carolina has been shut out in 146 games dating to 2007.

Zeid struck out two and walked two. More important, he got stellar defense behind him.

Green Wave center fielder Nick Boullosa went to the wall to run down a deep fly with two on and two out in the fifth. And the constant shifting of Seth Henry and Steve Moritz between second and third produced a couple of good plays by Henry.

But the biggest plays were made by Allain.

In the third with one out, Allain ran down a fly by Ryan Wood down the right-field line, and in the same motion threw out Dustin Harrington trying to score from third.

In the seventh, Harrington tried to score from second on a two-out single by Trent Whitehead. But Allain's throw to catcher Jeremy Schaffer was on the button.

"The first one was just a momentum play, " Allain said. "I knew I wasn't going to hit the cutoff man. On the second one, I just attacked the baseball and made a good play. In a game like this, you've got to compete every chance you can get."

Allain also played a part in the two-run fifth inning for Tulane that broke a scoreless tie, but not in the way he wanted.

He was called out at the plate on a single by Boullosa after starting the inning with a walk. But Josh Prince kept the inning alive with a single to center, and Powell followed with a line drive down the left-field line that brought in both runners.

Tulane scored a run in the eighth when Jared Dyer walked, and Allain singled. Matt Ryan struck out, but Dyer and Allain advanced on a double steal. Boullosa then grounded to first baseman Brandon Henderson, but he booted the ball -- and Dyer scored.

"My teammates picked me up time and time again, " Zeid said. "I can't thank them enough. And sometimes, you've just got to get lucky."